Blizzardhowl's Apprentice
by kayixu
Summary: A certain three-legged warrior doesn't feel like she is needed, or wanted. All words of encouragement fall upon deaf ears…. Well, almost all. She's about to realize what others knew all along. Blizzardhowl's apprentice is about to help her learn something important.


**Hai. Wanted to write a nice little story about Blizzardhowl, so here's the attempt. If anyone reading this is also waiting for the next "Insanitytale" chapter, stuff happened that prevented me from writing it. It should definitely be posted at the next updating time.**

 **'kay, so here's a story. I hope it's not terrible!** **(i think that's officially my fanfiction catchphrase)**

Was no place safe from the destructive paws of Humankind? The creatures carried an unmistakable scent. Blizzardhowl's fur stood on end at the thought of it. What had they been doing so close to Clan territory? As she trailed behind her Clan-mates, the white feline could only reach one conclusion.

 _We're doomed._

She resisted the impulse to hiss when her apprentice tripped on a half-buried root. It was pointless. This whole thing was utterly pointless. Pearlpaw, timid as she was, was still a better warrior than Blizzardhowl. The same would likely be true for Frostpaw someday. Her apprentice was actually learning to hunt and fight against all odds.

Not that it mattered. With all the threats posed to RogueClan, she doubted it would survive. Especially when its leader was blind to the obvious. She slowed her pace, merely watching as the others continued. Maybe she could slip away for a while. It wasn't as though she would be missed.

OoOoOoOoOo

Her prey's fur blended well with the ground it scurried across. She hurried clumsily after the shrew, barely reaching it before it could enter a hole. Disappointment had ruined her appetite when she failed to kill a mouse earlier. She needed to eat though, so she hastily swallowed the pitiful excuse for a meal.

The sun was setting, its light turning the landscape a golden color. She'd been away since noon. It hadn't been her intention. Every time she thought of rejoining the group, she asked herself what the point was. Every time, she had no answer to give. She only remained close enough to see the others in the distance. That task alone was tiring.

 _So what if I disappear? What would be lost? Nothing. RogueClan has no need for me._

It was after dark by the time she returned. Emeraldfire was fast asleep beside a bush. Nightfeather and Frostpaw rested at the base of a tree. Irontooth observed her from one of the branches. His blue eyes were filled with annoyance as he addressed her.

"It's about time you showed up. The last thing we need right now is another missing cat, you know."

"Aw, were you afraid without the three-legged cat here to protect you?"

This served to increase the grey feline's ire. He was before her in an instant, fur fluffed up to a ridiculous degree. She purred with amusement. Irontooth's mouth was open, belligerent words moments away from being screamed.

"Enough you two," Emeraldfire said from her position. They hadn't exactly been quiet, though the other two still slept. "Blizzardhowl, go to sleep. Irontooth will wake you at moonhigh to keep watch."

Feeling pleased for these precious few heartbeats, she settled next to some stones.

OoOoOoOoOo

"I caught it! I caught a squirrel!"

"Fantastic."

Blizzardhowl glared at her own prey. Two mice and a tiny bird. It was hardly what one would expect from a warrior cat's hunt. Coupled with Frostpaw's catch however, it would be enough. Not far from these woods was a small Human territory. Irontooth and Emeraldfire were there, looking for signs of their missing Clan-mate.

Nightfeather was out looking for a water source. As she dropped her prey in the clearing everyone was to meet up in, the black feline arrived. She left a few minutes later. She was in no mood for company. Blizzardhowl followed the directions to a river and stared at the rushing water.

The current was surprisingly strong. Droplets landed on her ears and face. She shook them off with an irritable hiss. So distracted by the chaotic liquid and her dark thoughts, she didn't notice Frostpaw approaching.

"When we get back, will you teach me how to fish?"

"There is a difference between the reflective scales of a fish and water. How do you intend to tell the difference?"

"From the way it moves," her apprentice answered simply.

She hadn't been expecting that response. Blizzardhowl replied with no small amount of irritation, "you don't need me to teach you."

"Yes I do!"

"It's a simple swift movement of the forepaw, with your claws fully unsheathed. You can hunt land prey already. Fishing will be easy."

"What about fighting?"

"What _about_ fighting?"

Frostpaw stared at her with determination in her damaged yellow eyes. "I can't learn _everything_ myself."

"Then talk to someone else."

"Why? Why don't you want-"

"Because I'm not even a warrior, flea-brain! I can barely run, hunting is almost impossible, and I'm the last to enter any battle that doesn't start in the camp!" During her rant, she stepped closer and closer to Frostpaw. She didn't stop to notice her apprentice was running out of room.

"I can hardly do anything thanks to a stupid Human trap! Songstar made you my apprentice because she didn't expect that much of you. But you're already besting me in everything! I can't teach you anything, Frostpaw. I am useless!"

With that last word, the smaller feline fell backwards, into the raging torrent. Without thinking, she tried to catch the retreating figure. Her pelt was soaked moments later. The dirty water did nothing to help her find which way was up. Unknown debris filled her blue eyes and caused them to burn horribly.

She couldn't breathe. Would this be her end? Was she destined to drown? Would Frostpaw die because her mentor lost control of her emotions? Eventually, all concerns faded, and air became a distant thought as everything fell into oblivion.

OoOoOoOoOo

It felt like there were thorns in her lungs. Her first instinct was to inhale, but first came expelling this water. She coughed and vomited, causing it to pour from her mouth, along with her most recent meal. The sound of the waterfall was distant, but couldn't be that far, she thought while her vision cleared.

A white-furred shape lay nearby, unmoving. Worry propelled Blizzardhowl to her apprentice's side. She dragged Frostpaw to dry ground and rolled her onto her back. She hadn't the slightest clue if this would work, but hoped desperately that it would.

"Come on, Frostpaw…." She put her forepaws on the smaller cat's chest. Her hind leg shook, feeling just a bit weaker than the rest of her muscles. "You can't survive a Tribe attack with almost no training, and then fall prey to water."

She shifted all her weight to her forepaws, and back again. After repeating this a few times, a jet of the dangerous liquid hit her squarely in the face. She back away to shake out her pelt as Frostpaw fought for air.

"Where…. Where are we?"

Blizzardhowl looked around at the open space, which looked to be uninhabited. Grass only grew in sparse patches here. There were a few bushes, and a rock wall where the waterfall existed. She could see no way back up.

"I don't know."

She began grooming herself, making a mental plan to get moving soon. It was then that she noticed Frostpaw was unable to stand. She at first summed it up to the action of trying not to drown. Remaining upright was difficult for her at the moment as well. There was a bit more to it than that, however.

She saw a long gash on her apprentice's foreleg, and her left hind paw looked like something had tried to shred it. Blizzardhowl then noticed her own injuries when her tongue came across sensitive skin. They couldn't go anywhere right now.

"Stay here," she ordered once finished.

She managed to find some goldenrod plants, and killed a shrew on her way back. The sun was setting yet again, and Frostpaw had made herself a little nest out of sand. Blizzardhowl woke the sleeping cat and told her to eat.

OoOoOoOoOo

The next day was uneventful. She found more healing herbs and coated their injuries with cobweb. All the time, an awkward silence persisted. She almost wished Frostpaw were acting like her usual self. Almost. The sun slowly fell into the unreachable horizon as she carried dinner.

Squirrels. Two large delicious squirrels. How on Earth had she managed that?

She dropped one of them by Frostpaw's bed and settled into her own. The sand wasn't nearly as confortable as moss, but not terrible. Amidst their meal, a voice broke the quiet.

"Blizzardhowl?"

Conversation was the last thing she wanted. Still, considering they were only in this mess because of her…. "What?"

"You're not useless."

She growled, and returned to her food. It wasn't long before night had fallen they were drifting off to sleep. Her flea-brained apprentice didn't have a clue what she was talking about. Regardless, Frostpaw held no anger at her for the situation. Apologies weren't something she had a habit of doing, and she didn't intend to start.

Yet the embrace of sleep didn't come to Blizzardhowl until she muttered, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause this."

OoOoOoOoOo

A screech tore through the night's tranquility. Her eyes opened, and she was on her feet in an instant. Frostpaw lay in her bed, bearing a new injury from the fox's teeth. It was on that same leg, too. There was no running.

Her claws found skin, and fangs found her tail. An angry cat it seemed was stronger than a hungry fox. The creature's ear was shredded and she used its muzzle as a scratching post from atop its head. It dislodged her and charged. She dodged snapping jaws not a moment too soon. Her opponent obviously wasn't getting enough to eat.

After a few more claw strikes however, it decided to find it's next meal elsewhere. She collapsed as it fled, panting. Once her breath came easily, she turned to glare at the smaller feline. Blizzardhowl's ire dissipated when she saw her apprentice.

"I'm sorry," Frostpaw said, battling with her bloody limb. "I tried to help, but my leg a-and my foot…."

"Why didn't you wake me when you saw it was here?"

"The second I opened my eyes, it tried to kill me. I got my neck out of the way in time, but…."

 _And we're both too exhausted to be woken up my scent alone,_ she concluded. "Once the sun rises, I'll go find some more herbs. Until then, I'll keep watch in case it decides to come back for some unknown reason. You clean your leg and go back to sleep."

Sitting with her back to her younger Clan-mate, she heard a quiet, "told you so."

This time, she didn't argue. Yes, the fox was small and weak. Yes, it was hungry because it couldn't hunt anything that wasn't sleeping. But she had driven it off single-pawed. She alone had saved the life of a Clan-mate. Blizzardhowl looked down at her paws. Unsheathing the lethal weapons they held, she purred.

Maybe she really was a warrior, after all.


End file.
